Beard begins work on STEM centre

The Guildford office of contractor Beard has begun work on a STEM centre at Richmond upon Thames College.Awarded through the Procure Partnerships Framework, the £10m project involves the construction of the three-storey building, combining specialist classrooms and training spaces for science, engineering and construction, forensic sciences, computing and robotics.It will also include workshops, laboratories and a laboratory for crime scene science.Each floor of the steel-frame building will be fitted with an external cladding system to complement the existing college campus. It will also feature a wildflower roof and photovoltaic solar panels to support biodiversity.Beard, along with architect 3BM and structural engineer HDR, has started work at the college’s brownfield site, following demolition of the existing building.The project is set to complete in the summer of 2024.Tom Jenkinson, director for Guildford, said: “Beard is well-known within the education sector for building outstanding spaces for teaching and learning. We are delighted to be chosen by the college to deliver this modern addition to its campus.”We have been working closely with the college and all our partners to ensure that the centre truly is state-of-the-art and provides the necessary spaces to meet the bespoke needs of each subject and specialist discipline.”Robert Drury, HRUC, added: “The new STEM centre marks the exciting next step in the transformation of Richmond upon Thames College. Our intention is to combine state-of-the-art facilities and a real focus of future technology to provide many more opportunities for students through our STEM provision.”Beard shares our ambitions and we’re delighted to be working with them again and to see this fantastic new facility take shape.”